By Muhammad Luqman
The three-decade old Pakistan Television drama serial ‘Dhoop Kinare’ will be broadcast with Arabic subtitles in Saudi Arabia in June.
This will be the first Pakistani TV drama to be aired in Saudi Arabia after Pakistan’s information minister Fawad Chaudhry announced last week during a visit to the Saudi capital of Riyadh that Islamabad would soon export its television series to the Kingdom.
Dhoop Kinare meaning “at the edge of the sunshine” in Urdu was a 1987 Pakistani television serial presented by Pakistan Television Corporation. The show centers on a team of doctors in a hospital in Karachi and revolves around their routines at the hospital and their private lives at home. The show starred Rahat Kazmi and Marina Khan in lead roles, was directed by Sahira Kazmi and written by Haseena Moin.
The move is the part of a programme initiated by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during the last three years to modernize the deeply conservative country where cinemas, public concerts and other forms of entertainment were banned for decades.
‘Dhoop Kinare’ is one of the two old Pakistani drama series, selected for televising with Arabic subtitles in Saudi Arabia. The other drama series is ‘Tanhaiyaan’.
“We have selected two very popular dramas, Dhoop Kinare (Sunlight’s Edge) and Tanhaiyaan (Loneliness), for Arabic subtitles,” Shahzia Sikander, Director International Relations at Pakistan’s state TV, told a Saudi newspaper Al-Arabia. “We will be able to send Dhoop Kinare to Saudi Arabia by June this year.”
She said, “This is the first time that Pakistan Television is subtitling Pakistani drama into Arabic for Saudi viewers”.
She added that the move would not only be a source of revenue for Pakistan but also bring recognition for local television series and actors and help Saudi nationals understand the culture of Pakistan.
Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Information Dr. Awwad bin Saleh Al-Awwad had visited Pakistan in last September to discuss how the two brother countries could broaden their relationship in the fields of media and culture.
